Love Knots

In the months leading up to Christmas, I got a bit obsessed with embroidery. It started when I bought some shiny new boxes to organise all my embroidery floss (I was an avid crosstitcher for many years so I have ALOT). I wanted to branch out from crosstitch and try something a bit more creative, and also learn some new techniques. 

I was inspired to work on my french knots by this amazing embroidery blog that I follow, Ambrosia Stitches. Amber’s creations are so beautiful and unique, I love checking them out. I have seen negative monograms around a few times, but I think hers are the loveliest. 

I had a couple of embroidery hoops that I bought from eBay ages ago, so I thought I would make a monogram for some good friends of mine. I sketched up a design on calico and got to work. However, I quickly realised that my french knots were abysmal – they kept coming out too large or too small, or falling through the fabric or just unravelling. I looked up a tutorial and realised I was missing a crucial step – I was winding the embroidery floss around the needle with the point down, which meant I wasn’t doing the necessary twist to get the knot to stay (have a look at the picture under step 4 of the tutorial if you have no idea what I’m talking about). Once I figured that out, I was so happy! French knots have always been a weak spot for me… if only I had looked up some instructions sooner!  

This was a really fun and relaxing project that could easily be done in front of the tv (my viewing choice was Game of Thrones). It was so nice to work on a project that didn’t have any rules or instructions for once. I am really keen to do some more work with french knots (now that I have improved my technique). I was really happy with how this project came out, but I think that  – like anything – I would definitely get better with practice!